Bad Girls

The welcoming bar area was warm and busy; and the auditorium was full and buzzing.
The programme contained good photographs and bios of the cast and directors. Especially loved the visitors guide to Larkhill Prison!

The set was a clean, blank page, with access from the wings. Scenery was projected on to the back screen, not on to the cast. All precise and very effective, the shots of individual cells were particularly atmospheric. Great use of lighting and sound effects throughout.  Props and furniture were well chosen: always appropriate…..efficiently handled and discreetly moved.
The costumes were delightful…a tawdry and colourful selection of tat. And, speaking of tat, many of the characters sported a variety of tattoos. Good attention to detail.

Brian Steel’s music was excellent: good, tight rhythms and NEVER dominating the singers.

The Inmates
Siobhan Walker totally inhabited the part of Shell Dockley, the fierce alpha female and top bitch of the wing. Zara Morley played her henchwoman, Denny, as tough but vulnerable.  Sophie Toyer gave a fine physical performance as Nikki Wade, desperate to win her appeal but falling foul of the system.
Sheila Gray was horribly good as the unrepentant sinner, Noreen Biggs. Great characterisation and comic timing.  Siobhan James and Amanda Mayne utterly rocked the two Julies, a hilarious duo, but with their own sad backstory. They gave a wonderfully bawdy number, ‘Life of Grime’.  Emma Bullock looked truly frightened and helpless as Rachel Hicks.  Not knowing who to trust, she falls victim to Fenner, who gloats on his power in the well executed song ‘The Key’.  Caroline Kavanagh breezed in and dominated the stage as Yvonne Atkins. Her good humour and earthy sensuality was a delightful antidote to some of the more tragic moments. She led the number ‘All Banged Up’ with its magical lines and grotesquely funny action.  Kirsty Hudson, as Crystal sang a beautiful spiritual, Freedom Road.  With strong support from Kirsty Hudson, Liz Lindsay and Victoria Brooks; they all made a varied and very believable bunch of prison inmates.
The Staff
Helen Stewart, strongly played by Sarah Robinson, was the wing governor, fighting for reform and her job. With Nikki, she gave the good, bitter-sweet duet ‘Every Night’.  The old guard was represented by Valerie Carr, who was excellent as Sylvia…tough as old boots but so wonderfully jaunty; and Kim Hill’s Jim Fenner gave a masterclass in creepy wickedness. They smugly presented the cynical duet, ‘Jailcraft’.  Mark Mowbray played Number One, a very slippery governor, more concerned with his own survival than with running an efficient and impartial prison.  Charlie English played junior warder Justin, the inmates’ eye-candy, always anxious to do the right thing.

All of the songs and music, by Kathy Gotts, were beautifully constructed and performed.
‘I Shouldn’t Be Here’ was a good opening number, introducing the cast.  ‘A-List’ was a lovely dance number – making great use of the space.  ACT I closed with a hugely confrontational T’hat’s the Way It Is’, as the inmates rioted.  ‘The Future is Bright’ was a terrific ensemble number; with great outfits and a tap-dancing Sylvia.  The ‘Baddest and the Best’ was a fast, fun number; and the show ended on a high with ‘This is My Life’.
Maybe some of the plot and dialogue were a little bit clichéd…so what ? The whole cast performed with truth and skill and bags of enthusiasm. And, against all odds, there was even a happy ending !

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